14 jobs that don't exist anymore

By Katie Dowd

on March 5, 2014 1:29 PM

Photo: Woolcott, Getty Images

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Ah, modernity. As the modern world creates new, strange jobs each year, we also render some jobs obsolete. Some, like leech collectors, are better left behind. But who among us isn't a bit nostalgic — at least in theory — for a world that's a little less automated?

Click forward to see 14 jobs that you probably won't find advertised on LinkedIn any time soon.

Ah, modernity. As the modern world creates new, strange jobs each year, we also render some jobs obsolete. Some, like leech collectors, are better left behind. But who among us isn't a bit nostalgic — at ... more

American factories sometimes employed guys like this, who stood or sat on elevated platforms and read books, newspapers and the like to the workers. Here, a newspaper reader entertains cigar rollers in Key West, Florida in 1930.

American factories sometimes employed guys like this, who stood or sat on elevated platforms and read books, newspapers and the like to the workers. Here, a newspaper reader entertains cigar rollers in Key

What did we do before our awful iPhone alarm clocks? Men like Charles Nelson of Hoxton in East London tapped on your window each morning to wake you up. These 'knocker-up' men and women were often employed by doctors, market traders and drivers. less

What did we do before our awful iPhone alarm clocks? Men like Charles Nelson of Hoxton in East London tapped on your window each morning to wake you up. These 'knocker-up' men and women were often employed by ... more

Photo: J. Gaiger, Getty Images

What did we do before our awful iPhone alarm clocks? Men like... Photo-5983613.81415 - Houston Chronicle

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Here's a job we're thankful doesn't exist anymore: rat catching. These poor little ones are arriving home after a night spent catching rats on the streets in May 1916.

Here's a job we're thankful doesn't exist anymore: rat catching. These poor little ones are arriving home after a night spent catching rats on the streets in May 1916.

If your kid thought a rotary phone was a novelty item, they won't believe that towns and cities used to employ real, live women to connect your calls. These switchboard operators worked at a long-distance center at 430 Bush Street in San Francisco in 1950. less

If your kid thought a rotary phone was a novelty item, they won't believe that towns and cities used to employ real, live women to connect your calls. These switchboard operators worked at a long-distance ... more

Our lives are a little less romantic since the lamplighter was made obsolete. London's oldest lamplighter, John Jennings, was lighting and extinguishing street lamps until the 1950s.

Our lives are a little less romantic since the lamplighter was made obsolete. London's oldest lamplighter, John Jennings, was lighting and extinguishing street lamps until the 1950s.

Photo: Chris Ware, Getty Images

Our lives are a little less romantic since the lamplighter was... Photo-5983621.81415 - Houston Chronicle

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A whole new generation of children were re-introduced to ice-cutting thanks to the opening scene of Frozen. Where'd ice come from before your fridge shot out ice cubes? Men like Mauricio Quintana here delivered large block of ice to establishments like the Hotel New Yorker. less

A whole new generation of children were re-introduced to ice-cutting thanks to the opening scene of Frozen. Where'd ice come from before your fridge shot out ice cubes? Men like Mauricio Quintana here delivered ... more

Photo: Jerry Cooke, Getty Images

A whole new generation of children were re-introduced to... Photo-5983622.81415 - Houston Chronicle

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Back before text alerts, a gentleman with a booming voice made important announcements. The town crier has long gone out of fashion, unless the British royal family has a baby. In that case, they trot one out in full, feathery regalia. less

Back before text alerts, a gentleman with a booming voice made important announcements. The town crier has long gone out of fashion, unless the British royal family has a baby. In that case, they trot one out ... more

Photo: Lefteris Pitarakis, Associated Press

Back before text alerts, a gentleman with a booming voice made... Photo-5983623.81415 - Houston Chronicle

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Would you like an appendectomy with your shave, sir? In the Middle Ages, you could get both. Barbers often doubled as surgeons, hacking off hair as well as limbs on the battlefield. Luckily for this gent, that practice died out long before he decided to get a hot shave. less

Would you like an appendectomy with your shave, sir? In the Middle Ages, you could get both. Barbers often doubled as surgeons, hacking off hair as well as limbs on the battlefield. Luckily for this gent, that ... more

Photo: Margaret Bourke-White, Time & Life Pictures/Getty Image

Would you like an appendectomy with your shave, sir? In the Middle... Photo-5983624.81415 - Houston Chronicle

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If you belonged to a royal family several centuries ago, chances were good that you had an official food tester who sipped your soup first to ensure it wasn't poisoned. This brave lady, Margot Woelk, was one of Adolf Hitler's food testers during World War II. less

If you belonged to a royal family several centuries ago, chances were good that you had an official food tester who sipped your soup first to ensure it wasn't poisoned. This brave lady, Margot Woelk, was one of ... more

Photo: Markus Schreiber, Associated Press

If you belonged to a royal family several centuries ago, chances... Photo-5983625.81415 - Houston Chronicle

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Ever wonder where doctors got the leeches for bloodletting? There was a job for that. Leech collectors often used the legs of animals to attract the creepy crawlies. In the mid-1800s, leech collecting was a huge industry — one that happily died out with the advent of better medical practices. less

Ever wonder where doctors got the leeches for bloodletting? There was a job for that. Leech collectors often used the legs of animals to attract the creepy crawlies. In the mid-1800s, leech collecting was a ... more